Anyone Suffering With Cte? Would Love To Hear Your Story...

idk what the heck I have going on. I’ve read several cte stories here and some mimic my experience and some not. I don’t have a diagnosis going on 5 years super thinning bad temples and sides now underneath and some I think, breakage. I’ve read a few on here who had bad temples and even receding hairlines and side loss and had cte and some have recovered and are regrowing. My loss doesn’t really fit anything except a few with cte on here. I’m just feeling super down today. This is something I never thought I’d had to go through. The hardest part is not knowing and no improvements that I can see.

I've been dealing with CTE since 2012 after having been on a beta-blocker that kick-started the hair loss. Stopped taking the beta-blocker about 4 months after having started it... but the hair loss continued. Like you, probably, I had tons of thick, thick hair; I now have a LOT less. My part has widened (I used to have virtually no part), my temples have thinned, my crown has thinned, and the hair around the nape of my necks has thinned. Photos of me from just a few years ago show a healthy head of hair; current ones show hair with less shine and bounce... In short, I have overall/diffused hair loss. For several years, I was losing fistfuls of hair - no matter how well I ate, what vitamins I tried, what doctors' advice I followed. I eliminated "hair supplements" after a couple years b/c I realized that I wasn't lacking any vitamins (blood tests) and, in fact, that some of the supplements were causing elevated liver enzymes! I chose not to start using Rogaine or similar treatments b/c I knew that they'd be a life-time commitment - with no guarantee that they'd work. I also chose not to take medications b/c I didn't like the possible side effects. There were months when I was so down that I couldn't bear to deal with my hair. I stopped going into the ocean and pools b/c I didn't want my scalp to show with wet hair. I ended up having my hair dictate my life - not good, but hard to overcome. I had a few months when my hair loss was less, but not stopped; then it would fire up again. Recently, very recently, I've been losing less hair - and am hopeful that it's the start of the end of this terrible drama. I am not at peace with the condition of my hair, but I am no longer in a constant state of anxiety about it. Yes, I still look at girlfriends' gorgeous locks and get wistful... but I no longer cry about my hair loss. Lots of prayer, meditation, and support from my amazing husband have helped me tremendously. I hope that you, too, will find some peace and that your hair loss will diminish or end! Best.

I've been dealing with CTE since 2012 after having been on a beta-blocker that kick-started the hair loss. Stopped taking the beta-blocker about 4 months after having started it... but the hair loss continued. Like you, probably, I had tons of thick, thick hair; I now have a LOT less. My part has widened (I used to have virtually no part), my temples have thinned, my crown has thinned, and the hair around the nape of my necks has thinned. Photos of me from just a few years ago show a healthy head of hair; current ones show hair with less shine and bounce... In short, I have overall/diffused hair loss. For several years, I was losing fistfuls of hair - no matter how well I ate, what vitamins I tried, what doctors' advice I followed. I eliminated "hair supplements" after a couple years b/c I realized that I wasn't lacking any vitamins (blood tests) and, in fact, that some of the supplements were causing elevated liver enzymes! I chose not to start using Rogaine or similar treatments b/c I knew that they'd be a life-time commitment - with no guarantee that they'd work. I also chose not to take medications b/c I didn't like the possible side effects. There were months when I was so down that I couldn't bear to deal with my hair. I stopped going into the ocean and pools b/c I didn't want my scalp to show with wet hair. I ended up having my hair dictate my life - not good, but hard to overcome. I had a few months when my hair loss was less, but not stopped; then it would fire up again. Recently, very recently, I've been losing less hair - and am hopeful that it's the start of the end of this terrible drama. I am not at peace with the condition of my hair, but I am no longer in a constant state of anxiety about it. Yes, I still look at girlfriends' gorgeous locks and get wistful... but I no longer cry about my hair loss. Lots of prayer, meditation, and support from my amazing husband have helped me tremendously. I hope that you, too, will find some peace and that your hair loss will diminish or end! Best.

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Sounds so similar..I choose no more meds, no rogaine at all and stopped vitamins. I too have been having a fluctuation in the hair and hoping it al least stops soon. My nape sides and temples are the worse but all over thinning. Mine has been going on ( since I started noticing anyway) 2014. I for the most part, haven’t been obsessing for quite some time but still long for a normal hair existence. No vitamins to products have help at all. I truly believe a lot of it is cte maybe not all but most. My hair seems so stringy at times and isn’t all one length, I do not layer my hair never have. This makes me truly sad. Thank you for your story, nice to know I’m not all. How did you know you had cte?

I knew about CTE through 2 dermatologists and 1 endocrinologist. I also have androgenic alopecia that, ironically, has taken a back seat to the CTE. According to my MDs, were it not for the CTE, the androgenic alopecia probably wouldn't have be noticed for several more years... FWIW: I use 4 different kinds of shampoos and conditioners that help give my hair some "oomph": Regenepure DR and Regenepure NT (at a hefty cost of $25 per bottle), Aussi Moisture Shampoo (for when my hair feels rather straw-y!), and L'Oréal Elvive Volume Filler. I usually use latter 2 the most. The L'Oréal shampoo is the one that gives the most volume. None of them will stop the loss, obviously, but they do help me feel better! Best.